Volume 12, Issue 18 — September 25, 2020

rAVe DS [Digital Signage] — Volume 12, Issue 18

September 25, 2020 | Volume: 12 | Issue: 18

I’ve never liked to write the sad news. As long as I can remember, the part of journalism where you have to cover those types of things — the stories that take hope away instead of giving it out — are the things I try to shy away from.

Unfortunately, that’s where we’re at right now. Sad news is inevitable. COVID-19 takes and takes and takes. You already know what I’m talking about. This week, Exponation filed for chapter 7 bankruptcy — so obviously, what we all feared happened. DSE 2020 is canceled. And the rest of them are too. That’s the doom and gloom of today’s digital signage issue. But we aren’t going to stop at doom and gloom.

Yes, we are talking a lot about DSE and Exponation in this issue. We have to talk about it. Jeff Hastings wrote a column that addresses it — and how we can process this and move forward as an industry. You can also check out rAVe’s article under the industry news section — where we include takes from Laura Davis-Taylor, Rich Ventura and Gary Kayye. All three are right: This industry is strong as hell. And we are going to move forward together. DSE may be gone, but you aren’t. Keep making the good news that I get to cover.

You guys are fantastic, and I speak on behalf of rAVe when I say our hearts go out to everyone at DSE and Exponation. We’re gonna get through this.

— Steph Beckett

P.S. I like ending these on a good note, so here is something to look forward to: We’re hosting our very first LAVNCH & Learn with Samsung — so if you’ve ever wanted to know more about advertising on digital signage — this is for you! It’s on Sept. 30; sign up here.

COLUMNS

+ Processing the Demise of DSE [Jeff Hastings]

Earlier this week, DSE show organizers confirmed what many of us had suspected for months — that DSE would not happen as planned in 2020. What came as a bit of a surprise was Exponation’s entry into Chapter 7 bankruptcy — such an abrupt and terminal move by the organization that lifted up our industry for so many years.

+ Surge in Corporate Video Use Is Fueling Growth in Entry Level Professional Video Products [Chris Evans]

The challenge for many businesses to facilitate home working at scale has proven to be a major catalyst in making video an everyday business tool. This has been one of the most significant operational and cultural changes businesses have faced in decades and has proven to be a fast-track education for many in the benefits of using video. Now that more companies than ever before have opened their eyes to the potential for video to be used to save time and money, it is encouraging many organizations to reevaluate how to use video technologies more prominently in their longer term strategy for success.